The ability of four tufted capuchin monkeys (
Cebus apella) to recognize the causal connection between seeing and knowing was investigated. The subjects were trained to follow a suggestion
about the location of hidden food provided by a trainer who knew where the food was (the knower) in preference to a trainer
who did not (the guesser). The experimenter baited one of three opaque containers behind a cardboard screen so that the subjects
could not see which of the containers hid the reward. In experiment 1, the knower appeared first in front of the apparatus
and looked into each container; next, the guesser appeared but did not look into any containers. Then the knower touched the
correct cup while the guesser touched one of the three randomly. The capuchin monkeys gradually learned to reach toward the
cup that the knower suggested. In experiment 2, the subjects adapted to a novel variant of the task, in which the guesser
touched but did not look into any of the containers. In experiment 3, the monkeys adapted again when the knower and the guesser
appeared in a random order. These results suggest that capuchin monkeys can learn to recognize the relationship between seeing
and knowing.
Tufted capuchin monkeys Theory of mind Social intelligence Intention
Accepted after revision: 10 September 2001
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